Hmm, I'll have to admit, this feels a bit awkward and wayward of me, my starting this list now, six weeks later than I really ought to have done. Even that notorious tortoise Karl appears to be putting his list to bed over on those geese (it's an excellent list by the way; you all should read it, but come back here won't yis). The path ahead looks lonely and punishing as fuck...and to think I started blogging because I thought it would be fun. THIS YEAR...IN A WORLD...ONE BRAVE MUSIC BLOGGER'S JOURNEY ...

Recommended Show: SATURDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2011 VHS OR BETA & ZAMBRI @ LE POISSON ROUGE 158 Bleecker St New York, NY 10012 $15, 11PM Though VHS or Beta (pictured) may be the headliner of this show, we're also pretty excited about Zambri , who open up. We'd say "get there early," but the show starts at 11PM. The Weakerthans @ Bowery Ballroom The Antlers & Suuns @ Webster Hall White Hills & Pontiak @ Littlefield James Murphy, Proxy, & Eye @ Terminal 5 Happy Refugees & Regal Degal @ Cake Shop Dax Riggs & The Dearloves @ Mercury Lounge Ingrid Michaelson @ Music Hall of Williamsburg Aziz Ansari & Hannibal Buress @ The Bell House ...

Sabotage Times : Change: Ian Curtis Dies Stephen: Can’t think of what changed after that, Ian died, obviously. James: I once asked Hooky about that about how he found out that Ian had died and he said he was having Sunday lunch and the phone went and he answered it, put the phone down, finished his lunch and then told his wife after the kids had left the table. That was the reality for Hooky as opposed to the legend that has been created around Ian since, often by people who never met or even saw him perform. How did ...

Recommended Show: SATURDAY, JULY 23, 2011 THE FEELIES, REAL ESTATE, & TIMES NEW VIKING @ CELEBRATE BROOKLYN Prospect Park Bandshell Brooklyn, NY 11215 FREE, 7PM The good news is that this show is free. The bad news is that the temperature might also be in the triple digits tomorrow. This might present a few problems for some concertgoers, but for those who brave it, it's sure to be a good show. Chapin Sisters @ Maxwell's Warped Tour @ Nassau Coliseum Young Buffalo @ Brooklyn Bowl Brian McKnight @ Apollo Theater Dinosaur Feathers & Apollo Run @ Moscot The Heartless Bastards @ Mercury Lounge Title Tracks, Steel Phantoms ...

The Secret History of the World can be saved by a bit of interpretation: it may be read as a reference to Foucault’s Pendulum by Umberto Eco. Century is Manuzio, Booth is Belbo or mr. Garamond, the mysterious initiate friend of Booth is Agliè… One of Booth’s sources, “Isis Unveiled”, is the name of a line of books for gullible conspiracy theorists published by Manuzio in Foucault’s Pendulum. Booth has published many books aimed at exactly that same market. He must know first-hand how easy it is to write an esoteric book and be believed. Eco once ...

Recommended Show: THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2011 BEST COAST & THOSE DARLINS @ LE POISSON ROUGE 158 Bleecker St New York, NY 10012 $25, 6PM We completely forgot that the L Magazine's Northside Festival kicks off tonight--that is until we started looking at what was going on this evening--however, we have to stray from the Brooklyn Festivities and recommend a Planned Parenthood Benefit with Best Coast at Le Poisson Rouge instead. (We will also remind you that awesome bands playing for good causes is no substitute for government funding!) Oh, and Best Coast are also featured on Adult Swim's Singles Program ...

Brooklyn, New York's Northside Festival is one of the fastest growing events in the nation, thanks to its diverse yet indie-tastic lineup and array of different venues around NYC's coolest borough, from the outdoor stage in McCarren Park to a host of tiny dive bars. SPIN editors picked 10 must-hear acts at this year's festival, which goes off from June 16-19, but even if you can't be in Brooklyn for the action, you can still enjoy this FREE download of songs from all 10 bands!   To stay on top of everything Northside-related, and for festivals throughout ...

To avenge their leader Sean Bin No Skinny Jeans' death, the anti-hipster terrorist network has decided to take action. It has been widely reported this week that their next target will be McCarren Park in Brooklyn, New York, anywhere from June 16 to 19, as hipsters from all across the tri-state area gather outside for the Northside Festival. As if the terrorist network needed any more proof that their plastic glasses-wearing nemesis would be in attendance, the Northside Festival announced an additional 65 new bands this week that have been added to their lineup: Surfer Blood, Sharon Van Etten, Theophilus ...

It is back again -- Brooklyn's very own Northside Festival . It is like a mini-CMJ for Brooklynites and Manhattan expats...and anyone else who cares to join. From June 16 to 19 join us in some sweaty, indie fun: take in the sights, multiple shows, multiple Heinekens (hopefully free) maybe get a free pair of shoes, and who knows, perhaps a midday sexual romp. You never know. Can't wait to see headlining bands such as, Sharon Van Etten, Grouplove, Holiday Shores, Dry The River, The Loom, and more. Check out the full Northside band list after the jump. Surfer ...

Recommended Show: THURSDAY, APRIL 7, 2011 ASOBI SEKSU & ZAZA @ BOWERY BALLROOM @ 6 Delancey St New York, NY 10002 $15, 8PM New York dream pop band Asobi Seksu are back home tonight and are playing at Bowery Ballroom. They're joined by the very appropriate opener ZAZA . The show is only $15 and starts at 8PM. Kaki King @ City Winery The Drums @ Mercury Lounge Toad the Wet Sprocket @ Irving Plaza The Young Empires @ The Studio at Webster Hall Capillary Action & Blarvuster @ Le Poisson Rogue MEN, Romy, & No Bra @ Music Hall of Williamsburg Papertwin, Rarechild, & Young Heel @ Bruar Falls Madensuyu, Zoos Of ...

Salsa is most commonly linked to New York and Miami, but a neighborhood in northwest Chicago boasted a vibrant salsa scene in the 1970s. A new compilation explores this hidden era in the city's music history.

I finished Donna Tartt's novel The Secret History   today. I was looking for a new book and  Lesley Arfin  — author of Dear Diary which I read and loved last year — said in an interview that she had separation anxiety from the characters after the book ended. At 600 pages you're definitely with the six (and then five) friends in their insular little world for such a long, harrowing ride that you can't help but think things like "Oh, that's SO Francis" toward the end. The book and some of the characters are such a slow burn ...

The Fader : “According to drdrestartedburningman.tumblr.com, Dr. Dre started Burning Man. A handwritten letter attributed to the good doctor claims Dre was scouting shooting locations for the “California Love” video when he stumbled upon Burning Man, whose lack of entrance fees and promise of “crazy, naked motherfuckers in the desert” gave him a great idea: to “get behind this shit and make some loot off of these fools.” And the rest was history!” Read and comment. From thefader.com.

The above video (which I first saw on Movieline) is of Mad Men star Jon Hamm doing a reading from My Dad Was in ZZ Top, a new book by Conan writer John Glaser. The book uses allegedly “found” documents to tell the secret history of rock n’ roll — Hamm is reading a chapter [...]

The above video (which I first saw on Movieline) is of Mad Men star Jon Hamm doing a reading from My Dad Was in ZZ Top, a new book by Conan writer John Glaser. The book uses allegedly “found” documents to tell the secret history of rock n’ roll — Hamm is reading a chapter [...]